Milchstrasse

I wish buddy -- pretty sure I'm a no-go though.

Just got an e-mail from the 104th confirming that phone calls will be going out by end of day Friday (25th).

Well shit.

Ohio (180th FW) has a deadline of October 15th. As far as fighter units go, that's the last one I know about right now. Of course, there are a number of non-fighter units hiring right now too, such as 143rd in Rhode Island who are accepting packets until the 30th.

104th holds their board this Friday, so don't expect to hear anything sooner than that. 177th notifications went out this weekend.

Just a reminder: 177th FW packets are due Saturday (8/15).

I think it's good, and is a far cry from its humble beginnings. The "more" button at the bottom of the listings is a little tricky, since clicking more doesn't actually display more results, but rather gives you the page links for more results. It would also be nice if more units would turn to it to post their openings. For example, there are 4-5 fighter units currently hiring, and none of them are listed on there. Is there any particular reason they don't want to use this as a tool for exposure, or are they just not aware that it exists?

I saw a Marine Hornet guy interviewing with the 125th FW (Eagles) last year -- and I'm pretty sure he got a job. I mostly remember this because he told a great story about how he shit his pants on short final while in country.

Update: A little good, but mostly bad news. Good: The waiver was approved. Bad: They hired more pilots while they were waiting and don't have a slot for me anymore. I'm 28 (28.2), with a approved SG Prescreen Waiver in hand, and may even be able to go get the MEPS prescreen stuff taken care of now -- do I have any shot in hell at another board with a different unit?

Thanks for getting that info for me. The person I'm working with is indeed the "flight chief" or the Recruiting Supervisor. I called the office yesterday, and talked to someone that said hey'd leave him a message and he'd call back. I have little faith that this will ever happen. I'll call again at the end of the week if I don't hear back. If there's someone above him, like a Retention Supervisor, I could talk to them, but I also feel like I'd be pissing off the Recruiting Supervisor in the process. Is it possible that I'm getting the run-around because it's easier to hire someone else than to push waivers?

Maybe, or just finding a contact within a squadron. I wouldn't spend a ton of money going to drill weekends around the country. You can keep doing things that you think will set you apart from the other guys. But again, probably the best thing you can do is to prepare for acing those tests the next time around. You're pretty young so you have a lot of time.

I'm guessing your no-gos are more a result of a filtering metric where you don't meet certain minimums they've established. Otherwise you seem like you have a good shot. Talking to people and getting your foot in the door is probably the best way to proceed until you bump up those scores. People do get hired with lower scores though.

Seems reasonable. I do a pretty good job of not reaching out to them more than once a week, and if I actually talk to someone, longer. I'll keep calling this week until I get in touch of someone, I'm sure they're busy.

The recruiter I'm working with submitted our SG Prescreen Waiver for a PDQ Relook about 60 days ago (this is for a guard slot). The PDQ was for minimal mitral valve prolapse in an echo I had done. I saw a cardiologist more recently, and there was no prolapse or leakage indicated in any of the valves. This report, a supporting letter from the cardiologist, and my entire medical history in the past 5 years were submitted in this waiver. My question isn't so much about the medical issue, but about how patient I should be, and how much I should or shouldn't pester my recruiter. If I were 24, this wouldn't be stressing me out so much, but I'm freshly 28, and feel the pressure of time heavy on my back. My e-mails often seem to fall on deaf ears and go unresponded. Getting in touch by phone is greatly hit or miss -- either the line is busy, or he's not in the office. If we weren't on opposite coasts, I might just stop by the office and see what's going on. I definitely don't want to circumvent him by sending my request to someone else, but I also want to look out for my own interests. Is there anything I can do to improve communication in such a situation?

I'll give you a useful reply. I was picked up for the 106th last year. For my interview, as a civilian, they had me report in. The recruiter before hand gave me the necessary instructions -- it wasn't a big deal. Unless you're asked to, I wouldn't worry about it.

You'll also probably be required to report to drill weekends once you're enlisted, which can be a hassle if you're in another state or on the other side of the country, but you can usually figure it out.

Finally got to see the cardiologist this week, and the new report only noted "trivial tricuspid valve regurgitation" and "Left Atrium: Mildly dilated." Measurement of the LA using the echo was 3.2cm. The LA diam. from the echo I had in 2010 measured 2.9cm. Wikipedia tells me that 3.2cm is normal. and mild is 4.1-4.6cm. Interestingly, the 2010 report had my Aorta diameter as 3.2cm, whereas the report I had this week was 2.8cm. It's as if the numbers just switched, and suddenly it's a problem. Is this something that will cause me problems?

Last week: Who needs two wings when you have high thrust to weight, and lots of rudder authority.

Here's an update: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2015/02/20/near-miss-this-f-16-landed-after-half-its-wing-was-sheared-off/

Found this. Operation Muath al-Kasabeh. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zYQEU9y1z4I

Just announced: 115FW will be holding a board this summer. Packets due June 11th. http://www.115fw.ang.af.mil/careers/pilottraining.asp

I was hired off the street, sans PPL, but I did have 20 something hours. Find the money, get the PPL. I wasn't hired at other units, and didn't even get an interview at some because of it.

Here's a pretty intense video of pro-russian separatists shelling the city of Mariupol: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISnzgvOpWL0 Here's another: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKZswlhkhKs

Off topic: With name like that, you're stepping into some mighty big shoes.

Can't answer your last question, but I can offer you some insight. The first time I was doing the guard thing, I was selected as an alternate, and got the phone call saying they'd be processing me because their primary had some medical hang-ups. I ended up having my own temporary medical hang-ups and decided to finish grad school before trying again. So yes, I would say it's not uncommon at all for alternates to get processed, simply because it's extraordinarily easy to get med DQed. My second time around I was called 15 minutes prior to the interview with the unit I ended up getting picked up with that I was selected as an alternate for their unit. I told him this on the phone, asked for advice, and he said if the other unit selected me, that I should definitely take the primary slot and not hold out hoping for a chance their primary wouldn't make it. Once again, I'm having a medical hang-up that should get waivered, but if it doesn't, that's an opening for an alternate. Keep looking, but understand that alternates get processed all the time from what I've seen.